Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., told reporters on June 17 that he would not have his health care reform mark ready by the end of the week as initially promised, and raised doubts that he would hold a markup prior to the July 4 recess. Finance Committee Democrats have been scrambling to find ways to bring down the cost, estimated by the Congressional Budget Office at nearly $1.6 trillion, to under $1 trillion.
Baucus initially downplayed the CBO figures, saying they were based on a plan that was two weeks old and has undergone significant changes since then. He emphasized that he plans to look for more savings through medical spending reductions and other offsets, rather than raising revenue outside of health care related matters. But mounting pressure from Republican opponents to reduce the cost and to find ways to make sure that more people are covered under reform has left Baucus with the difficult task of once again trying to forge an agreement that will gain the approval of his party and appease the loudest GOP critics of the plan.
Obama administration response
The Obama administration does not regard the Finance Committee's delay in drafting the bill as a setback, according to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. The White House still believes that health care reform legislation can be done this year, Gibbs said at a press briefing on June 17. Noting that Baucus is working toward a bill that has bipartisan support and contains “cost-saving measures that are paid for,” Gibbs said these are the same as the administration’s goals. However, the administration to date has not called for additional taxes to finance a final health care package beyond its own proposal to reduce certain deductions for higher-income taxpayers.
HELP committee markup underway
As Baucus retreated from his initial deadline, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., filling in for the ailing Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., began marking up that Committee's partially completed bill. That measure has also proved controversial as CBO estimates pegged the price so far at over $1 trillion over the 2010-2019 period, or approximately $6,250 per newly insured, and noted that it would only provide coverage for an additional 16 million individuals out of an estimated 46 million uninsured. Moreover, the mark remains incomplete, with scant language addressing how to pay for the health care makeover. The markup is expected to take two weeks.
Bipartisan Policy Center recommendations
Meanwhile, a health care reform proposal offered June 17 by Bipartisan Policy Center advisors and former Senators Howard Baker, Tom Daschle, and Bob Dole, received high praise from Baucus and Senate Finance Committee ranking member Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa. "The proposal not only helps identify areas of clear agreement, it addresses critical reforms, such as tackling cost concerns and ensuring quality coverage while holding insurance companies’ feet to the fire," said Baucus. "It should encourage current members of Congress that former leaders of both political parties were able to find a compromise on even the most controversial health care issues and demonstrate that bipartisan reform may be achievable,” said Grassley.
Centrist GOP plan unveiled
Reps. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Charlie Dent (R-Penn.), and members of the centrist Tuesday Group, have released details of a comprehensive health care reform proposal designed to lower costs and expand access without compromising the doctor-patient relationship, jeopardizing the quality of American medicine or raising taxes on the American people. The Medical Rights and Reform Act will protect every American's relationship with their doctor, the integrity of the medical profession and the right of Americans to choose the care they deem appropriate without federal delay or restriction. To lower health care costs, the Act provides for state innovation through insurance market reforms, high-risk pools, community health networks, and new association options for small businesses; lawsuit reforms to end the practice of defensive medicine and ensure fair compensation for injured patients; upgrades and acceleration of health IT programs to improve the quality of care and reduce errors; strong standards and processes to target waste, fraud and abuse; targeted prevention and wellness programs to address costly chronic diseases and promote healthy living; and greater tax incentives for individuals and small businesses to buy health insurance. The bill also expands access by: providing greater incentives to small businesses to cover their employees; encouraging state-centered insurance markets reforms; giving low-income families the option to use public funds to purchase private health insurance plans; enhancing Health Savings Accounts; allowing young adults to remain dependents on their parent’s plan; and expanding rural health care programs.
CCH Washington Bureau, June 17, 2009.
For more information on this and related topics, consult the CCH® Medicare and Medicaid Guide.
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